Pharmaceutical industry in Turkey - statistics & facts

The pharmaceutical industry is considered one of the key sectors of the Turkish economy. With the enforcement of Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) in the country since 1984, pharmaceutical production in the country has been carried out under international standards and has reached a technological infrastructure comparable to that of European countries. Hence, Turkey has become one of the biggest markets for pharmaceuticals, ranking 10th among European countries as of 2021.

The main indicators of the market

The demand for and spending on pharmaceuticals has been constantly increasing in Turkey in parallel with the growing population and higher life expectancy. Correspondingly, the sales value of pharmaceuticals in the country has been steadily going up over the past decade, peaking at almost 110 billion Turkish lira in 2022. During the same period, the medicinal products market showed continuous growth as well, totaling around 7.5 billion Turkish lira in 2022 compared to 0.9 billion Turkish lira in 2015. In line with the growth of this sector, the expenditure on research and development in Turkey rose significantly over the past decade. In 2021, nearly one billion Turkish lira was spent on R&D in pharmaceuticals, an increase of 967 percent compared to 2010 figures.

Turkish pharmaceuticals imports and exports are both on the rise

As of January 1, 2018, Turkey is a member of the Pharmaceutical Inspection Co-operation Scheme (PIC/S), which includes countries such as Germany, Switzerland, the United States, Australia, and Japan. That was a significant accomplishment for the Turkish pharmaceutical industry in terms of expansion of the sector’s global reach and more trade opportunities. The export value of the pharmaceutical industry has been continuously rising since 2016, seeing the highest figure in 2022 at nearly two billion U.S. dollars. However, the value of imports in this industry has been rather higher than the exports, recording 5.3 billion U.S. dollars in 2022.

Pharmaceutical companies

Some major global companies operating in healthcare, pharmaceuticals, nutrition, and life sciences, such as Pfizer, Novartis, Bayer, and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), have production, manufacturing, development, and clinical research facilities in Turkey. As for the domestic companies in the sector, Abdi İbrahim İlaç Sanayi ve Tic A.Ş. was by far the leading manufacturer, with its net sales exceeding 4.9 million Turkish lira in 2021. Ranking second, Koçak Farma İlaç ve Kimya Sanayi A.Ş. saw year-on-year growth in its net sales, reaching approximately 2.5 million Turkish lira in the same year.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Zeynep Dierks, Jan 10, 2024

Key insights

Number of pharmaceutical units sold in Turkey
2.55bn
Number of people employed in the pharmaceutical industry in Turkey
44.07k
Number of pharmacies in Turkey
27.36k
Get more insights

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Revenue of the pharmaceuticals market in Turkey from 2016 to 2027 (in million U.S. dollars)

Pharmaceuticals

Revenue of the pharmaceuticals market in Turkey 2016-2027

Revenue of the over-the-counter (OTC) pharmaceuticals market in Turkey from 2018 to 2027, by segment (in million U.S. dollars)

Pharmaceuticals

Revenue of the OTC pharmaceuticals market in Turkey 2018-2027, by segment

Leading companies manufacturing basic pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical preparations in Turkey in 2022, based on production-based net sales (in million Turkish lira)

Pharmaceutical Products & Market

Leading manufacturers of pharmaceuticals by production-based net sales in Turkey 2022

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